Book vs Movie: Touching from a Distance/Control

The biography “Touching from a Distance” is about the life and death of the musician Ian Curtis. The book was written in 1995 by his wife Deborah Curtis.

What is it about?

touching from a distance

Deborah Curtis the one who knows Ian Curtis better than anybody else talks about how she meets Ian and falls

in love with him. They get married and start a family.

After some time Ian becomes the singer of the band Joy Division. They are successful

and start to tour. But with the success Ian epileptic seizures, that many people misinterpret as an entertainment technique, begin to worsen.Although Ian loves his wife and his daughter, he falls for Annik Honoré, a Belgian music journalist, while touring. The highly sensitive Ian who often has to deal with mental problems isn’t able to make a decision, he doesn’t want anybody to get hurt.

Eventually his problem end with suicide. Ian Curtis dies at the age of 24.

What is better, the book or the movie?

control

Deborah talks about her life with Ian very sympathetically, about the ups and downs, the good and the bad times. You suffer with the cheated Deborah as well as with the mentally ill Ian.

The movie which was shot by Anton Corbijn in 2007, is base on the book by Deborah Curtis but in my opinion it

shows more than the biography. The movie reflects more perspectives the book shows the story the Deborah experienced it. So the movie offers a wider spectrum, which helps you to form a better opinion, whereas the book has more depth.
To creat more intensity and to show the melancholia of Ian’s soul the entire movie is shot in black and white. In combination with the performance of some amazing actors like Sam Riley (he looks just like the real Ian) a real masterpiece was created.

It is hard to tell whether the movie or the book is better. Although they both discuss the same topic, they illustrate different points of view. I think both the book and the movie are great recommendations.